hey guys,
I've been looking for a project camaro for a while now, and me and my friends finally came across one: a white '79 berlinetta with the 302 and an auto. I know it's the chick trim, but we're planning on debadging it and turning it into a fun summer project (with a 455HO hopefully in the future!). is there anything I need to look out for before buying? it runs, but hopefully I'll be able to drive it today to see some other stuff. it has around 119k on it too. it will become my friend's daily driver once it's 100% roadworthy. any tips/advice/opinions before we finalize things?

 

Structural rust, check out the frames (mainly rear, sub's can be replaced), floors, trunk, cowl corners (dash), rear bumper support, rad support and inner fenders etc. etc.

welcome and good luck

joe

 

Probably not a 302 unless someone swapped engines already. They should be a 305 or a 350. Check the floors for dampness to see if it's been leaking. Look underneath and poke the metal under the floor pans with a small screwdriver to ensure it's not rotted out.
Welcome to the forum!

 

sweet! I have a friend who has a lift that I'm taking it to tomorrow once the guy gets it temporarily insured for us to drive it. The rear bumper support (or whatever was right behind the bumper) was pretty rusted through; how serious is that? the rest of the car is solid, mainly some surface rust here and there. the two things i'm worried about are brakes and the gauges. the brakes are real mushy, and once they start to grab there's not much stop to them. I have a feeling it's a mix of hardly used brake parts, bad fluid, and maybe the master cylinder is going. but the gauges don't work except for the fuel, voltage, and temp. any issues with those that you guys have had?

I'm pretty sure it's an original 302, but the guy did have springs swapped in to get a 402 in (correct me if i'm wrong on the displacement) so the front sits a little higher than the rear.

 

If the tail panel is gone behind the bumper check the trunk drop offs, the frame rails, and the front spring pockets. Open the trunk and have someone under the car shine a light up where the trunk drops off. Something cause the rear to rust. Maybe it sat in grass for too long. If so check the brake and fuel lines. I got to get out to my dads and take some pics of the 78 and let the new guys see what we're talkin about.

 

yeah I need to go through brake lines definitely. fingers crossed that nothing is too too beyond repair. I just went through some prices for parts though, and they're all really cheap!! The guy we're looking to buy from doesn't know sh$t about this thing, he was looking at spending 30k to get it in driveable condition. I'd imagine that's to put it on a showroom floor, with a 4.10 12bolt rear, 405 with a turbohydromatic, and everything else redone. today I'll take pictures and post them up here, but thanks for the info guys I'm gonna try all of the tips today.

 

Not original if it's a 302, as that wasn't offered in 1979.
Better look very closely for more rust! Having rust issues at the rear bumper support means there's more rust, or it's hidden under paint and filler.
The brakes can't be anything really spendy, even if it needs everything rebuilt. New lines and flex hoses, plus new master and wheels rebuilt still isn't big dollars. Just some parts and lot of time. Most likely it's got a bad master cylinder which is about $22 for rebuilt and $38 new. Probably needs the whole system flushed and bled too. Of course I'd rebuild the wheel cylinders, and front calipers, then install new pads and shoes. That should get it going and stopping well. Check the lines and hoses for signs of rust or dried and cracking hoses.

 

yeah the 79 only came with a 250, 305 or 350 if im not mistaken?